JUSTMEN

Director: H (Heinrich Reisenhofer)Commission by the Baxter Theatre Centre, funded by the City of Cape Town

I have taken on a project that is very close to my heart, which is to create a theatre production about men taking a collective stand with men who abuse on woman and children. The call for men to take action has been a long time coming, woman have been increasingly asking where are the men taking a stand?

In this I have decide to do something that has not been done before in our modern SA context which is to create a show just for men. Men only? Most people are shocked when I share this with them. Its almost as if I hit a wall in their responses. "It will never work", "Why on earth would that be a good idea?

My answer is simple. If we really want to proactively stop epidemic of abuse and violence that affects woman and children, there is something in the collective domain of men around the definition of our masculine role that we finditmentally need to addressed, and it needs to be addressed by men.

I have been doing mens healing work for the past year as a coach, I have done the Mankind Project and attend weekly men's groups.

The reality is that most men are different with men than they are when woman are around. There are some things men will only say in front of other men and these are the spaces where we are often complicite in enabling in sexist and misogynistic perceptions whether consciously or unconsciously. This is what we need to transform.

Yes, you read that correctly, it is a show by men just for men, proactively talking about things that South African men need to talk about together if we are to have have a healthier society and healthier relationships.

The reality is that we need to deal with the contexts of what men share amongst men.

Many people have told me that this idea will never work, South African men will not come.

They said that woman are the ones who mainly buy the tickets for theatre, men only want to come to comedy shows and sports events.

The said that men from different cultures and backgrounds will not be willing to stand together on this issue.

They said men are not interested and committed to change unless they are forced to.

They question whether men can not be trusted to make a difference.

They said that men will not be willing to show up and make their mark.

I think they are wrong. I think that while men may be slow to change they are willing. There is collective story about men that needs to change and the only ones who can truly change it are men.